Quote:

Originally posted by bigben91682 WG is gonna have to start a waiting list. :-)

I was thinking the very same thing.

ATB,
Sam

I already have one.

Got word tonight that the mast base is en route. I'll be rigging everything this weekend and hopefully testing up on the ME coast next week.....I'll post pics once I return (no internet where we are)!

I gotta say I'm pretty psyched to see this coming together, and I must say this forum and it's members is one of the best out there, community of kiters is second to none.

Thanks everybody, and I'll keep updating this post as things evolve.

Got the mast base today from WG, and it's a thing of beauty. Fits like a charm and it's perfectly plum on the goose neck. This thing is a lot more robust than I expected, awesome craftsmanship.

Started putting things together this afternoon, I'm waiting to drill the holes this weekend when I can actually use a drill press, but I think things should work well next week once I hit the beach.

:D

I still need to get the boom situated and figure out all the connections at the rear axle, the mast supports on the outsides and a block connection in the middle. Should be rolling in no time!

Ben , I forgot to ship you a small stainless shackle for that hole at the base . It was to be for a pulley block for the mast control? If you want I can send ya one . Or head to your local west marine,ya might wanna use a block that already has a clevis on it. Anyway that is what the hole in the gusset at the base is for. Glad you like, hope it works.

I actually went to West Marine this afternoon to pick up the blocks I ordered and I picked up a few shackles specifically for what you mentioned, thanks for thinking of it though.

Very impressed with your work, can believe how heavy duty this thing is while still being surprisingly light, the welds are beautiful.

Thanks again!

@wg- that shows the master you are with the torch, hopefully mine will be as well done.

@ben- regarding the blocks, what size did you end up using, I was looking at some online at west and was thinking to use the series 20 blocks which were about 10-12 bucks a piece. Also what are you thinking of using for the boom and mast stays. I found some aluminum structural stock at mcmaster that is reasonably priced that i am thinking of using (page 1914, if you have not been on that website- it has everything)

cannot wait to hear the reports of how well it works
scott

I welded it like my butt was gonna ride it... Oh yeah, I AM gonna ride it... Isn't there a pulley that is supposed to be behind ya for the boom?

Great job Donnie and Big Ben! I can't wait to see this thing in action!

I got 29mm Harken AirCarbo Blocks, and paired it with a nice running rigging mainsheet, I got 40' but after rigging it today, I think 30' would have been enough. If you click the picture I used (3) - 340's and (1) 341 at the end of the boom, the becket is used as the beginning point of the main sheet. The blocks are expensive, it ended up being $80 for the 4 blocks, but they are smooth as a baby's bottom.

http://www.westmarine.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductD...

Got the boom finished this afternoon. Here's a pic of the rigging, you can see the 4 different blocks. I didn't put the sail on because I haven't drilled the holes for the mast base yet, so the rope holding the boom up is just temporary, the sail will hold it up in the future. I used an 8' boom for now, I'll probably shorten it down the road but I want to be able to get enough outhaul on the sail.



Here's a detail of the block on the boom, shows the becket.



As for the stays that go between the mast base and the rear axle, I'm going to use ratchet straps temporarily, as they only need to carry tension. I was thinking about a more rigid stay, like threaded rod and turnbuckles, but the whole rig is a little awkward to get in and out of so I want to ride it a bit before I decide on what I want to use permanently for the stays.

Here's the gallery for the project so far (I haven't posted all my picks on here), I'll keep posting to this gallery as the project moves along.Project Gallery

aircraft cable and turnbuckles

I may have to make you a new downtube out of some real stainless square tube.
I'm thinkin, a big blast o wind, is gonna torque that "flimsy" ,thin tubing. Eventually... It wont take very much twist to throw your steering awry.

But ya gotta break some eggs...

I'll probably end up with cables/turnbuckles in the end, it will be the cleanest installation. I could even sew up some canvas sleeves make 'em look real purdy.

You may be right about the down tube, we'll see what happens. It only looks flimsy because you're stuff is so heavy-duty

I want a long axle before you go making other stuff for me

Does your sail have parallel spars in it? Just wondering! Kind of looks like it does!

Nice build. I also have to believe that the rig is gonna twist awful bad around the downtube. Even thicker wall tubing may not do it. Just guessing you could have a couple hundred pounds of force in a blow with a lever arm of maybe 5-6' from the buggy down tube. Hope it all works out.

Zooter and the german Landsegler unit both use stainless tube tension/compression struts from rear axle to boom gooseneck, and the Blokart is built pretty much the same way. There was a guy building small land sailors with cantilevered masts out in WA or Oregon, but I think he stopped making them. If I recal his 'downtube' was a big square 6061 aluminum tube - maybe 4" square, with some long mast partners/gussets to beef up the step.

krumly

Well the Maine coast was a skunk. The tides and winds never aligned in the morning/evening when the beach was empty enough to actually ride. One morning was looking good with low tide and decent wind, so I dragged myself out of bed early, but the wind never showed up, just light breezes barely enough to maintain a crawl. But I got it rigged at the beach and got a short and very slow run on the largest sail I brought.... Seems pretty sturdy, I'm going to put in cables as stay's for the mast base. I don't see any need for these struts to take compression as others have commented, but perhaps that will reveal itself once I get moving in actual wind. Anyway, here's some pics of the (nearly) finished rig.

After a summer of crappy (basically nonexistent) inland wind, I finally was able to test out the zooter, and it worked like a charm.

I brought it down to Wildwood Buggy bash this past weekend. On Friday the winds were nukin, something like 30g40, there were some other blokarters out there flying 2m sails and a few on 3m sails. The smallest sail I have is 4m. After the lunch the winds died slightly (25g33) so I decided to give it a shot. After a little break in period (luckily nothing was broken during this 'period') I was cruising up and down the beach. I didn't have a GPS but going by the landmarks I probably put on about 10 miles the first afternoon, speeds probably approaching 30mph at times, really haulin. Once I got the hang of it it was really simple to sail and cruise at decent speeds. The only thing I wanted at the end of that session was a wider axle (more on this later), and a higher pully ratio on the main sheet. It was a lot of work sheeting in the sail in high wind.

Day 2: winds were calmer, 18ish, and steadier than Friday. Unlike the pervious day's offshore direction, this was a parallel wind direction along shore. Luckily there's lots of room at wildwood so I stayed near camp and just tacked around a lot. I got to the point where I was lifting a wheel at will, and I had so much fun doing this I changed my mind about a wider axle. The inherent 'instability' of a narrow axle is half the fun. Takes a lot of balance to keep the wheel up in the air, really and interesting challenge.

All in all I had an absolute blast on the zooter and I'm really happy how the project turned out. I can't thank Donnie enough for his expert welding skills. After getting used to it this thing is far easier than buggying with a kite, ESPECIALLY in gusty conditions. Gusts are no problem because you can dump power instantly, unless of course you don't want to.

Here's some video from Day 2, also posed in the WWBB forum, but not everybody looks in there.....

It was a pleasure watching you launch that thing for it's maiden voyage! I am glad that it was a success for you!

Sorry i did not ride it Ben, but w/ the pink skirt curse, it's probably a good thing that I did not. If it can be broken ,I can break it. And I was havin a blast tearin up the beach

Just like Maven 454's tee-shirt said"I VOID WARRANTYS"


glad to be of service.... WG

Like

Ben,
That was the motivation i needed to get mine done- i have the mast extension made and just need to come up with the rear supports now. Looks like you were having a hugh blast
nicely done
Scott

I just finished up some more mods to the zooter, and I think it's finally complete, first here's some shots from Wildwood:

Day 1, high wind and the smallest (4m) sail I had. Feeling it out, tipped it over a few times but got a good few hours and some high speeds at times. I stole these images from somebody's set at wildwood, don't remember who.....

BTW, if anybody knows what tags to use to get a larger image, please let me know, I've seen it in other posts but I don't know how to do it, these thumbnails are a drag...

Anyway, Day 2 at wildwood, better wind, bigger sail (4.7m - really seems like the sweet spot for this rig) and a lot more confidence:

Finally, the new mods:

First I added another pully to the mainsheet and added rigging to move the connection point above the axle. Before I had a 2:1 pully rig and it was a bear to hold on to the mainsheet while a wheel was in the air, or to just sheet in the sail. I added another pully to get 3:1 and it helped a lot when I took it out to the local field. I don't have any pictures of this mod, because it's not that exciting, but I know a couple of people are trying to build their own so I thought I'd mention it.

Second, I ditched the cable stays. As Krumly mentioned before most other land yachts use rigid struts. Originally I didn't think it was necessary, I thought a tension stay would be enough. After a shakedown though, there is just to much play in the whole body of the buggy when only using cables. SOOO I ordered some aluminum fittings and pipe and rigged up some rigid struts out of 1" aluminum pipe. I used parts from Hollaender Speed Railing system, they are very beefy! I was able to use the original loops that WG put on the mast base for me so the installation was relatively simple. Unbelievable difference in the rigidity of the buggy, I can't wait to get it out again for a try, I think this will make a big difference in the handling and stability of the buggy, plus it feels a lot more secure sitting in it....



Connection at the mast base:


From the rear:


Connection at the rear axle (loop was originally for the cable stays but I'm using it now for the mainsheet rigging:




another view of the connection at the mast base


And finally sleeping in the toy cave:

Looks alot stronger now Ben.

Yeah, I definitely think that will do the trick....

Looking forward to getting it out again, hopefully before the spring bash.....

Definitely looks stronger, can it still be unattached like you had the cable stays for eaze of getting in and out?

Oh and I love the sticker!:bouncing: